The invention relates to an apparatus for providing heat to prevent the formation of ice at a fish hole when ice-fishing, and providing a heated seat and convective heat for the user's comfort when ice-fishing or hunting, while also providing an attachable canopy and transport sled for the users additional comfort and ease of use.
Numerous patents have been developed to aid individuals interested in ice fishing with keeping their ice fishing hole from freezing over. Many inventors have tried to improve on this inventor's prior U.S. Pat. No. 4,131,107 issued Dec. 26, 1978 to Godbout. Most include some type of containment design around the ice hole, similar to Godbout. One makes use of a semi-collapsible design similar to Godbout. Many include a tip-up device for alerting when a fish is on the line as an improvement.
This inventor's prior design (Godbout) called for use of a combustible internal heat source such as “Sterno” T.M canned heat, a gelled alcohol chafing fuel of low volatility. Many follow-on patents use candles as an internal heat source (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,598,656 issued to Strasser; U.S. Pat. No. 4,945,668 issued to Keller; U.S. Pat. No. 5,282,333 issued to Klinkhamer), although some rely on other combustible materials as an internal heat source such as charcoal briquettes (see U.S. Pat. No. 4,662,099 issued to Stewart; U.S. Pat. No. 4,253,262 issued to Johnson), and several make use of solar energy designs (see U.S. Pat. No. 4,980,986 issued to Harper; U.S. Pat. No. 4,953,317 issued to Ruchel).
These prior art ice-fishing device designs are small portable units which are sized to enclose a fish hole in the ice, and do not anticipate a larger enclosure to provide for a heated seat or an attachable canopy as part of a transportable shelter. These prior art designs also make use of heat sources which are not as stable or consistent as this inventor's prior design (Godbout) and therefore cannot provide predictable performance with varying temperature conditions. None of these prior art designs provide heat or shelter for the comfort of the user.
Numerous other patents have been developed to aid individuals in keeping warm while hunting or fishing by providing for a heated seat for the user to sit on. Following are the most relevant examples: U.S. Pat. No. 6,705,308 issued Mar. 16, 2004 to Hubscher is a Person Heating Device, which provides for a pail type design with the preferred design using a liquid fuel burner to produce heat for heating a seat and venting heat into the users clothing; U.S. Pat. No. 5,405,186 issued Apr. 11, 1995 to Hanson et al. is a Heated Seat Device which provides for a cylindrical stool type design with the preferred design using a pressurized gas burner to produce heat for heating a seat and venting heat into the users clothing; U.S. Pat. No. 3,024,782 issued Mar. 13, 1962 to F. A. Knopps is a Heated Seat which provides for a pail type design using a liquid fuel burner to produce heat for heating a seat and venting heat into the users clothing; U.S. Pat. No. 2,904,031 issued Sep. 15, 1959 to V. L. Scott is a Hot Seat which provides for a pail type design using an internal charcoal stove to produce heat for heating a seat and venting heat into the users clothing.
These prior art heated seat designs all provide for a simple portable stool type of seating arrangement with excess heat being vented into the users clothing and do not anticipate a larger enclosure to provide for the enclosure of a fish hole in the ice or for an attachable canopy as part of a transportable shelter. None of these prior art heated seat designs provide heat to prevent the formation of ice at an enclosed fish hole while ice-fishing. None of these prior art heated seat designs provide an attachable canopy to contain the escaping heat and to provide protection from extreme weather conditions for the user. None of these prior art heated seat designs provide for a transportation means, and must be hand carried to a desired location.
Ice-fishing and winter hunting can involve temperatures ranging from thirty degrees Fahrenheit above zero to thirty degrees Fahrenheit below zero or colder, making a simple heated seat that is adequate when temperatures are higher entirely lacking when temperatures drop significantly lower, where the user's comfort becomes a significant issue. If there is any wind, even warmer temperatures can feel cold, and lighting a candle or charcoal even in a semi-protected enclosure can be difficult if not impossible, and lower temperatures with significant windchill can rob heat even more quickly, making the user's comfort a priority and causing ice holes to freeze over quickly even when protected with prior art devices.
What is needed then, is a transportable sheter apparatus which provides additional heat and shelter for the user while providing predictable heat for melting ice at a fish hole along with heat for the users comfort, which makes use of a heat source that is portable, easy to start, available in large and small heating sizes to produce higher or lower heat, and will provide predictable and consistent heat which is simple and easy to use. What is further needed is a transportable sheter apparatus which allows for quick and efficient setup, which is transportable for ease of moving to and from a fish hole or hunting blind, which is inexpensive enough that anyone interested in ice-fishing can afford to own and use it, and in particular, which includes an optional canopy shelter for additional protection from severe weather conditions and which will help capture and contain escaping heat to retain warmth even in extreme cold.